Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jul 18, 2026

Viola sonata

The viola sonata is a sonata for viola, sometimes with other instruments, usually piano. The earliest viola sonatas are difficult to date for a number of reasons:in the Baroque era, there were many works written for the viola da gamba, including sonatas in the Classical era and early Romantic, there were few works written with viola specifically in mind as solo instrument, and many of these, like those of the Stamitz family, may have been written for the viola d'amore, like most of their viola works—though it is now customary to play them on the viola; it was more typical to publish a work or set, like George Onslow's opus 16 cello sonatas, or Johannes Brahms's Two Clarinet Sonatas in the late 19th century, that specified the viola as an alternate. Two early exceptions were the viola sonata of Felix Mendelssohn and the opus 1 sonata of the composer Ernst Naumann (1832–1910), published in 1854. The viola returned to a solo role in the 20th century. Max Reger wrote three sonatas for either clarinet or viola at the beginning of the century. Paul Hindemith, himself a viola virtuoso, composed works several sonatas for viola solo, and others for viola and piano such as the Sonata for Viola and Piano, Op. 11 No. 4 in 1919. Rebecca Clarke composed the Sonata for viola and piano the same year. Bax's Viola Sonata, written for the great English viola player Lionel Tertis in 1923, is one of his most-played and oft-recorded chamber works. Mieczysław Weinberg wrote four viola sonatas between 1971 and 1983. The Sonata for Viola and Piano, Op. 147, is the last composition by Dmitri Shostakovich, completed in July 1975 and dedicated to Fyodor Druzhinin. György Ligeti wrote his Sonata for Solo Viola between 1991 and 1994. In the 21st century, Graham Waterhouse wrote a viola sonata entitled Sonata ebraica, completed in 2013.

Last revised
Jul 18, 2026
Read time
≈ 7 min
Length
1,699 w
Citations
24
Source

The viola sonata is a sonata for viola, sometimes with other instruments, usually piano. The earliest viola sonatas are difficult to date for a number of reasons:

Work list

See also

See also

Notes

Notes

  1. Composer's adaptation of the two Clarinet Sonatas
  2. Both composed for Hermann Ritter's viola alta
  3. Later reworked as his Cello Sonata.
  4. Transcription of Clarinet Sonata
  5. Alternate versions of Clarinet Sonatas.
  6. Originally for Viola d'amore.
References

References

  1. Donald Maurice, "Schostakovich's Swansong," Journal of the American Viola Society 16, no. 1 (2000): 13.
  2. Preisser, Martin (11 December 2015). "Die Bratsche in jüdischer Klage" (in German). Tagblatt. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  3. "Wise Music Classical - Home". www.wisemusicclassical.com. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  4. Woolf, Jonathan (August 2005). "Review: Easley Blackwood - Chamber Music". MusicWeb International. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
  5. Sutton, Kevin (October 2003). "Review: BLISS - Oboe Quintet/Piano Quartet/Viola Sonata". MusicWeb International. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
  6. Freyhan, Michael. "Romantic Revival: Rediscovering the Viola Music of York Bowen". Strings Magazine. Archived from the original on 2006-06-29. Retrieved 2016-07-15.
  7. Tirimo, F. (no date) Works - Viola Sonata. Available at: http://www.jamesfrancisbrown.com/works/work.asp?workid=286&order=catdate (Accessed: 13 October 2015)
  8. "Souvenirs from Gothenburg". Archived from the original on 2005-09-12. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  9. "ALAN HOVHANESS works Part 2: Music on the Web(UK)". www.musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  10. "Bertold Hummel work commentaries". www.bertoldhummel.de. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  11. "Bertold Hummel work commentaries". www.bertoldhummel.de. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  12. "LEGLEY, Vic". 2006-06-30. Archived from the original on 2006-06-30. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  13. "NYVS 2005-2006 Season Concerts and Programs". 2007-05-24. Archived from the original on 2007-05-24. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  14. "Records International Catalogue March 2003". www.recordsinternational.com. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  15. "Collection: The David Stanley Smith Papers | Archives at Yale". archives.yale.edu. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
  16. "Vainberg - Oeuvres par Genres". 2006-03-28. Archived from the original on 2006-03-28. Retrieved 2023-07-22.
External links